Spa Destinations is a lifestyle brand founded with the goal of helping people create luxury spa experiences at home. Theo Prodromitis founded the company in 2003 as a direct sales company through in-home parties, but seeing that model declining with the economy in 2008, she scaled back business — and kept a lookout for the next opportunity. “As things went down, we had to reinvent ourselves,” she says. “We had to recreate the business model and innovate and be flexible.”

Prodromitis discovered Amazon’s platform in 2014, which allowed Spa Destinations to reach more customers with its education and products, plus receive added benefits including expertise in advertising, promotions, logistics and fulfillment. “And then you are backed by one of the most trusted brands in the world,” she says.

Disputing the media narrative of the “retail apocalypse,” she says retail is evolving. Prodromitis got her retail start in department stores, and her move online with Spa Destinations still means addressing the question of how to be customer-centric. “Even if you're not seeing them face-to-face,” she says, “how can you still touch them? How can you still engage with them and be responsive to each generation's desire to engage with brands?” She encourages other businesses to find the synergy between physical space and online.

Listen to the full episode to hear how Spa Destinations used the platform to evolve into a customer-centric business. To learn more about how small retailers can take a stand for issues that matter to them, check out NRF’s Retail Advocates Summit.

Nadee Bandaranayake is an assistant producer on NRF’s Retail Gets Real podcast. Meet all the co-hosts and learn more about the show.